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Tag: personality

When looking at the Tree of Life (TOL), one sees the 10 spheres, which represent the ten aspects of God as translated into human personality, and the 22 paths that connect the spheres. However, the idea of pathworking, or pathwalking, is not often talked about, except in books especially written on the subject (for example, books by Will Parfitt and – my personal favorite – Gareth Knight).

[An interesting graphic novel series, the Promethea series,has a couple of volumes that deal with the TOL and other, relevant magical topics. It’s a vividly depicted, entertaining read if you’re into that artform]

I prefer the term pathwalking to pathworking, since pathwork is often used to describe the work of John and Eve Pierrakos (which is also known as Core Energetics). Besides, pathwalking implies a pilgrimage of some sort, which is what this form of inner exploration is akin to. In this practice, we take a pilgrimage into our own personalities – and even reach out to that boundary between god and human.

Depending on the path to be walked, particular symbols, colors, and aspects of personality are used to awaken the relevant forces in the subconscious. Each path also has a Tarot card of the Major Arcana associated with it. This card provides the key that unlocks the path to be walked.

The journey begins in one of the two spheres connected by the path (the paths are two-way streets, so either sphere can be the starting point). By carefully envisioning the appropriate symbols, the pilgrim walks the path to the other sphere, gaining insight, wisdom, and sometimes surprising experiences.

It is important to remember that everything one experiences during this process is already within the psyche. There’s nothing there that isn’t ultimately under the pilgrim’s control. I say that because, along the way, the pilgrim may experience the negative side of the path, as well as the positive. Remember, the TOL is made of polar opposites as well as complementary forces. Therefore, there can be the occasional Qliphothic encounter. It’s nothing to be afraid of, but it can be challenging when it happens.

BTW, I intend to do a guided visualization series based on the paths. This format is a nice way to go when pathwalking, as the symbols can be laid out in the visualization. This makes memorization less of a chore. Stay tuned, though, because right now it’s only one of many things bouncing around my tortured brain.